TWELVE_THE DELUCA FAMILY
Morning came earlier than Aiden wanted.
Soft sunlight slipped through the tall windows of the bedroom, falling across the large bed.
For a moment, Aiden forgot where he was.
Then he heard a voice.
“Are you going to keep staring at the ceiling all morning?”
Aiden turned his head.
Alexander was already awake, sitting at the edge of the bed while adjusting the cuffs of his black shirt.
His hair was slightly messy, but he still looked annoyingly composed.
Aiden groaned and pulled the blanket over his face.
“This is still weird.”
Alexander raised an eyebrow.
“What is?”
“The fact that I woke up in the same room as a mafia king I barely know.”
Alexander stood up calmly.
“You married me.”
“I was forced,” Aiden replied from under the blanket.
Alexander ignored that comment.
“Get dressed.”
Aiden slowly sat up.
“Why?”
“Because you’re meeting my men today.”
Aiden blinked.
“Your men?”
“My organization,” Alexander said simply.
Aiden stared at him.
“You’re introducing me to the mafia?”
Alexander looked mildly amused.
“You are my husband. They need to know who you are.”
Aiden rubbed his face.
“This day just keeps getting better.”
---
About an hour later, Aiden followed Alexander through a large hallway that led to another part of the mansion.
The atmosphere felt different here.
More serious.
More guarded.
Two large guards stood outside a set of double doors.
They immediately stepped aside when Alexander approached.
“Boss.”
Alexander opened the doors and walked inside.
Aiden followed.
Inside the room, several men were already waiting around a large table.
The moment Alexander entered, they all stood.
“Boss.”
Then their eyes shifted to Aiden.
Curious.
Confused.
Suspicious.
Alexander walked to the head of the table.
Aiden stayed beside him, trying not to feel nervous under all the staring.
Alexander spoke calmly.
“There has been a change.”
The room remained silent.
“My bride ran away yesterday.”
Several of the men exchanged looks.
“But the alliance still happened,” Alexander continued.
He placed a hand lightly on Aiden’s shoulder.
“This is Aiden.”
The room went very quiet.
One of the men frowned.
“Boss… that’s the bride’s brother.”
“Yes,” Alexander said.
“And he is now my husband.”
The silence that followed was almost dramatic.
Finally, a tall man with dark hair stepped forward.
He studied Aiden carefully.
Then he gave a small nod.
“As long as the boss accepts him, we accept him.”
A few of the others nodded slowly.
But not everyone looked convinced.
Aiden leaned slightly toward Alexander.
“They look like they’re deciding whether to throw me out the window.”
Alexander replied calmly,
“If they were going to do that, it would have happened already.”
Aiden sighed.
“Very comforting.”
For a brief second, Alexander’s lips twitched slightly.
And although the room was filled with dangerous men…
The tension between the two newly married husbands was somehow the most interesting thing in the room.